The Board of Governors — a group of 17 members who preside over all the state’s public universities — will meet on Nov. 3 and Nov. 4 to discuss finances, John Kelly’s reappointment, and new STEM programs.

Board members meet throughout the year, and each time they do so at a different public university in the state of Florida.

Princeton law professor Robert George will give a presentation to the Board of Governors about freedom of expression on university campuses. 

George is a co-author of publications such as “What is Marriage? Man and Woman: a Defense,” which argues against same-sex marriage; it argues that that marriage should lead to procreation and should be monogamous. He also co-authored “Embryo: a Defense of Human Life,” which argues that, from conception, a fetus is a human being and should not be used in stem cell research.

The state required its universities to submit a budget plan which the board will review on Nov. 4. FAU’s plan lists their 2021-2022 carryforward budget at $361 million, the money coming from student tuition as well as state funding. The carryforward budget is money left over from the previous fiscal year. FAU’s total operating budget for 2020-2021 was nearly $900 million.

The university is budgeting at least $5.6 million in funds for MRI machines; $1 million for starting up a clinical practice, details not specified; $7.3 million for unspecified faculty research; $1.8 million for furniture, IT supplies, and other research services for the College of Medicine; nearly $2.6 million for real estate advisory services, which aid in making decisions about property use; $1 million for undergraduate scholarships; alongside many other projects and monetary needs listed in the plan. There are few additional details in this document regarding the projects described above.

In September, the FAU Board of Trustees, the institution’s governing body, unanimously approved the reappointment of university President John Kelly for a one-year contract. On Nov. 4, the BOG will vote on Kelly’s reappointment as well as those of FAMU President Larry Robinson and University of West Florida President Martha Saunders.

The Board of Trustees votes on university plans, but the BOG ultimately has the final say.

Larry Burns, the former General Motors Corporate vice president of research and development and planning, will be presenting for the BOG after a keynote presentation from Florida International University’s Board of Trustees chair to the Board on post-pandemic planning.  Burns is a professional speaker and has given over 500 presentations.

FAU is proposing new academic programs, such as a new Ph.D. program for neuroscience. The Board of Trustees has already approved these programs, but the BOG will make the final decision. If they approve, the university plans to start the program in spring 2022.

Gillian Manning is the editor-in-chief for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, tweet her @gillianmanning_ or email [email protected].